Divine Spellcasters

The Aetheric War And The Gods' End

At the start of the Age of Antiquity, the gods came into being. They opened their eyes to behold a universe of wonder and chaos, and they were enamoured by it. They wanted to shape it into something that resembled them. But to do that they needed to impose order. The Cardinal Gods moulded a portion of the universe to their liking, and set about creating a pantheon of lesser gods to help them. They shaped the firmament and the seas, then the land and all the creatures that followed. They named the land Etharis and created the races to populate it. As these newborn mortals turned their minds to their creators, the gods found an endless font of believers. Their worship lifted the gods to greater heights, securing their ability to turn the wheel of the universe.
But the Gods were not alone. At the fringes of their ordered realm lurked the Aether Kindred, incomprehensible beings of pure chaos who predated the gods themselves. The Kindred were mostly content to remain uninvolved, though occasionally the gods would find a piece of reality in disarray. A star gone missing, an ocean dried up, an entire city disappearing into the void. When the entire race of the Sommerkin vanished one day, the gods decided they'd had enough. The Aether Kindred were an active threat to their power. The gods feared that one day all they had built would be stripped away. They had to strike now, while they still had the faith of their followers and stood at the height of their powers.
Thus, all the gods, good and evil alike, banded together as a host and launched an assault on the Kindred. This became known as the Aetheric War. None can say precisely what happened to the gods who participated in the war. Some historians say it was a slaughter. Others believed the gods were consumed by the eldritch horrors they tried to defeat. Some state the gods retreated from this plane to someplace the Kindred could not reach them. While nothing is certain about what happened to the gods thereafter, it is quite certain that they were utterly defeated.

Of the great pantheon, only the four strongest survived: Galt the Builder, Maligant Warclad, Ulmyr the Wise, and Aurelia of the Hearth. Perhaps out of caution or fear, or maybe even arrogance. They sent the rest of the gods in their place, believing the issue would be dealt with effectively. They were wrong, and they were the only ones left to pick up the pieces, becoming responsible for the fostering of Etharis' future once more.
If there was any silver lining to the Aetheric War, it was that the Kindred never showed themselves afterward. It's believed these horrors slept deeply after destroying so many of the gods, perhaps requiring rest to heal from their wounds. But once they have regenerated, they will likely take revenge on the rest of the gods' creations. Whatever the reason, this left the Four Divines to their own devices. as the surviving gods left to guide the mortals of Etharis, they decided to band together. Their idea was to create an ideal empire, the "one above all" to act as a shining beacon for all mortals to emulate. This idea became the Bürach Empire. Its first emperor, Indorius I, Would become the Lightbringer for all the nations of Etharis. To this end, the Four Divines gifted him with four holy artefacts that would enable him to rule wisely and protect his empire.
For a good time, all was good. Unfortunately, this method of salvation carried the seeds of its own destruction. The Bürach Empire so loved their emperor that decided to keep his bloodline eternally pure. The Church of the Hearthkeepers imposed the Edict of Eternal Blood, mandating that only those of the line of Indorius I may ascend to the throne. With that, they forced his descendants to intermarry, weakening their blood. the wretched outcome of this practice finally manifested in the Mad Emperor, Leopold. When Leopold touched the divine artefacts, his mind and soul were instantly connected with the Four Divines, and it drove them all to madness. Galt, Maligant, Ulmyr, and Aurelia warred among themselves, each vying to reign as the One True God of the universe. This culminated in the Gods' End, when these last remaining deities destroyed one another. Etharis carries on as a godless world. While divine power remains, and various beings seek to claim their place in the pantheon, it constitutes but a shadow of its former glory.

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Cleric

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Hit Points

Hit Dice: d8 per Cleric level
Hit Points at First Level: 8 + your Constitution modifier
Hit Points at Higher Levels: 1d8 + your Constitution modifier per Cleric level after 1st, re-rolling allowed on a 1 or 2

Proficiencies

Armour: Light armour, medium armour, shields
Weapons: Simple weapons
Tools: None
Saving Throws: Wisdom, Charisma
Skills: Choose two from History, Insight, Medicine, Persuasion, and Religion

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Overview and Creation

Clerics are rarer in Etharis than they might be in other settings, with the Former Gods dead and new imitations trying their best to plug the gaps, it leaves little in terms of excess divine power to bestow to mortals. If you are chosen by a god to be their cleric, you are likely strongly aligned with the gods motives and domains. Many people in Etharis are starved for guidance with the New Gods still working on stabilising their powers. As a wielder of divine magic, you may use that hunger to bring hope and light to the world, or you could twist it to your advantage. Rarity is a form of power after all. Regardless of their intentions, many clerics find the pressures of being a vestige of godly power overwhelming. Similar to Aasimar, the common people shower clerics with respect but grossly over-estimate a cleric's powers. To them, they see no possibility of varying growth between clerics, likely expecting all clerics to be as strong and capable as the strongest one they've ever seen.
Character Creation Note: When creating a cleric you need to choose your god and domain, in rare cases it is possible to select one of the Cardinal Gods but many will be dedicated to gods from the New Etharis Pantheon. Please choose a god that matches your domain and think about why you were chosen to be a champion of the deity.

Paladin

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Hit Points

Hit Dice: d10 per Paladin level
Hit Points at First Level: 10 + your Constitution modifier
Hit Points at Higher Levels: 1d10 + your Constitution modifier per Paladin level after 1st, re-rolling allowed on a 1 or 2

Proficiencies

Armour: All armour, shields
Weapons: Simple weapons, martial weapons
Tools: None
Saving Throws: Wisdom, Charisma
Skills: Choose two from Athletics, Insight, Intimidation, Medicine, Persuasion, and Religion

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Overview and Creation

Where one might think paladins are equally rare in Etharis as Clerics, it is actually much easier to become a paladin with a lack of powerful deities. The path is harder but when paladins make oaths, they may do so with dedication to a God but the actual power of the Oath comes from within. The zealous dedication to their chosen tenets, as such paladins are still able to thrive in the current situation of Etharis' divinity. Many people see Paladins as the stereotypical white knights, there to protect them. However, in the morally grey nature of life on Etharis, it is easy for them to find themselves on the wrong side of a Paladins righteous fury.
Character Creation Note: When creating a paladin, consider your oath and what you dedicate your oath to, both outwardly and inwardly. Is your oath made int he name of a God, or just to someone closer in your life? Remember that whatever the tenets, they must be followed unflinchingly.